I’ve got a few little back-to-school magic tricks up my sleeve to make mornings smoother, faster, and (hopefully) tear- and tantrum-free!

1. Mornings

Let’s rip off the Band-Aid and tackle the trickiest part first… mornings! Everything you read makes it sound so simple: lay out the clothes, prep the lunches, wake up early, sip coffee in peace. Cute idea. But real life is more like this: one kid can’t find a shoe, the other refuses to eat anything that isn’t shaped like a dinosaur, and I’m wondering if cold pizza counts as breakfast. (Spoiler: it does.) I finally invested in hanging closet organizers, and honestly, they’ve saved my sanity more than once. Each cubby gets an outfit, and boom, less drama at 7 a.m. Here is a simple one I picked up on Amazon.

2. Homework

Homeworks is a battlefield. No matter how organized I try to be, we always end up missing something. That’s why I rolled in with a supply cart full of everything: pencils, markers, glue, you name it. It’s basically a mobile survival kit for math meltdowns. And when my child asks me to explain long division, I do what every smart mom does: smile, nod, and pull up Khan Academy on the internet. Because if I didn’t get it in 6th grade, I’m not about to figure it out now. Here is the one that works for me. 

3. Evenings

Evenings? They’re a three-ring circus. Between soccer, choir practice and Girl Scouts, I sometimes wonder if I should just keep folding chairs in the back of the SUV because I live in parking lots now. Dinner must be fast, or it’s drive-thru again. My secret weapon: sheet pan meals. Toss chicken, veggies, and potatoes on a pan, sprinkle on some olive oil, seasonings and parmesan cheese, bake, and call it gourmet. When I’m out of ideas, I scroll through Delish for easy weeknight recipes. 

4. Lunch packing!  

Let’s just say some days it’s Pinterest-worthy with cute little lunchbox notes from inklings, and other days it’s “grab a granola bar and good luck.” Weelicious’s lunchbox ideas have saved me from repeating PB&J and Lunchables a hundred times in a row. On the pinterest-worthy days I feel quite proud of myself with these stainless steel boxes! 

5. Schedule

Ohhhh, the schedule. It’s taped to the fridge, color-coded, and still somehow impossible to follow. Everyone has a different practice, rehearsal, or meeting, and I’m just trying not to double- book myself. Google Calendar helps (every kid has their own color) but even then, I’ve shown up at the wrong field at the wrong time more than once. At least I had snacks, which automatically makes you the hero mom. Through all of this, I’ve realized the biggest secret to surviving fall routines: is taking care of yourself, too. It doesn’t have to be elaborate. Ten minutes of YouTube Yoga, lighting a pumpkin scented candle, or even just sitting in the car after drop-off with a hot latte and blessed silence, it all counts!

Moms deserve little rituals that make the chaos bearable. So yes, fall routines are messy. They’re exhausting, unpredictable, and fueled mostly by caffeine and prayer. But they also mean a return to structure after the free-for-all of summer. The kids eventually adjust, the mornings eventually smooth out (kind of), and you start to find a rhythm again. And honestly? As long as the kids get to school mostly clothed, homework is turned in more often than not, and dinner occasionally involves a vegetable, I’m calling it a win. If fall is really about fresh starts, then mine starts with a glass of wine at 8 p.m. after bedtime chaos. Cheers to new routines!

The post Back to School, Back to Sanity: Surviving Fall Routines appeared first on AKAMom Magazine.

Bedtime and toddlers mix as well as oil and vinegar most nights.  Bedtime can be a time of frustration for many parents as toddlers escape their bed and sneak out of their rooms multiple times. Below you’ll find some helpful tips to get your child to sleep in their own bed without waging World War III:

Create a Routine: Kids feel safe with routines.  Having a schedule they are familiar with lets them know what they can expect on a daily basis.  Don’t rush the bedtime process as it is important to help them wind down and relax.  After dinner have active play time to burn off excess energy.  Consider using an egg timer to ring when it is time to head to the bath.  Use bath time to transition them to a calmer state and prepare them for bed.  Allow each child to select a book to read and gather together on a bed to snuggle and read.  Include their favorite stuffed toy or blanket to be part of the bedtime ritual. After story time give kisses and hugs before tucking them in and turning out the light.

Be Strong: Toddlers  will find a myriad of excuses to get out of bed. It’s important to be strong and not give in to their wishes.  Each time they wander into the hallway, escort them back to bed and firmly say goodnight and tuck them in.  It is important to continue the process with a firm calm voice until they stay in bed for the night.

Confront their fears: Children will sometimes get out of bed due to being afraid. Fear of the dark usually starts when kids are old enough to conjure up their own imagination.  Normally, this fear will hit kids between the ages of 2 or 3. At this age, they can imagine things but they don’t yet have the cognitive ability to distinguish between fantasy and reality.  So it’s easy for a shadow of tree branches blowing in the wind to turn into a scary monster.  Once lights go out, it’s easy for a child’s imagination to run wild.  To help alleviate their fear of the dark, talk through what they are feeling and help them process what they actually see.  Redirect their focus with a happy song or story.

Reduce Stimulation: Too much television can be over stimulating for small children, especially before bedtime. Limit the amount of time kids spend watching television as well as the types of programs they tune into. Shut off the TV early and focus on family time.  Leave them with happy thoughts to ponder as they relax and fall asleep.

Review Sleep Schedules: If you’re having a continuous problem with getting your child to sleep at bedtime, review their sleep schedule.  Your child might not be tired enough to sleep. Try setting a regular time to rise each day between 6:00 and 7:00 AM; schedule naps from 10:00 – 11:00 and again from 3:00 – 4:00. Set bedtime at 8:00 PM; and see if consistency makes a difference.  If your child has a high energy level, you may need to plan for more activity throughout the day to wear them out.

Bedtime shouldn’t be just one more check on your daily “To-Do” list.  Make this time special by creating your own bedtime rituals that help your kids feel safe and secure and ready to fall asleep.  Dress them in comfy pajamas, let them sleep with their favorite toy or blanket and reduce stimulation before bedtime.  Sleep training with a toddler is a like a marathon, be ready to endure multiple false starts before they finally make it to the finish line!

About Vivienne Van Eijkelenborg & Difrax:
Vivienne Van Eijkelenborg offers her tips to expectant and new parents. Vivienne is the owner of Difrax, a Dutch baby products company that pioneered a pacifier system designed to accommodate each stage of baby’s development as well as the smart s-bottle designed to reduce colic when feeding. Difrax offers innovative, stylish, and trendy products that make the lives of babies and their parents as convenient and as pleasant as possible.

See the complete Difrax pacifier system at www.difraxusa.com. You can also follow them on Twitter and “like” them on Facebook. 

The post No More Bedtime Battles appeared first on AKAMom Magazine.

Summertime is filled with memory making opportunities. Time spent at the beach, picnics in the mountains, and traveling to visit out-of-town family and friends can cause us to forget the responsibilities and routines that await us in the fall. Summer ends all too soon and getting families ready for the school year is an essential part to the end of summer.

Create fun traditions that bring a close to summer and reduce kid’s anxiety as they prepare for the school year. Change the stigma that is attached to summer ending and school starting by trying these family friendly tips.

• Kids of all ages experience some degree of anxiety at the beginning of each school year. Whether you have a preschooler who is nervous about using the potty or a first-year middle school student who is nervous about his new schedule and having a locker. Taking time to discuss what they are anxious about will give you an opportunity to calm their nerves. Try some role-playing to help them express their fears and concerns while providing some well thought out solutions.

• Manage your own level of stress as the new school year begins. Kids will pick up on your anxiety level and begin to feel more anxious themselves. Use Labor Day weekend as your official goodbye to summer celebration. This can be your final getaway before you settle in to the school year routine. Whether you spend one final weekend at the beach or you camp in the backyard, make time to focus on family fun and building new traditions. Celebrate how the kids have grown over the summer and help get them excited for the challenges and activities they’ll participate in this year.

• Schedule doctors’ visits early for sports physicals and vaccinations. This is an excellent time to check eyesight and hearing to give your child every advantage in the classroom.

• Buy school supplies early so you’re not frazzled the week before school starts trying to pull together everything the kids need for their first day.  Make shopping for school clothes more fun by taking several shopping trips over the summer. Take one child at a time and make each day special by going to lunch at their favorite restaurant.

• During summer vacation, kids typically don’t adhere to strict sleeping schedules. A couple of weeks before school begins, transition the kids into the habit of going to bed 10-15 minutes earlier each night and waking up 10-15 minutes earlier each morning until they are back on their normal sleep schedule.  These small time adjustments will help them adjust to their new routine with ease.

• Talk about what the morning routine will look like once school starts. Lay out clothes for the next morning at bedtime the night before. Prepare school lunches in advance and set them out on the counter to grab-and-go as you leave each morning. Assign a regular place for homework and backpacks so you’re not rushing around each morning hunting for belongings before school.

• Set up a color coded family calendar. Once school starts, keeping track of everyone’s activities can be stressful. Mark important dates on the calendar like back-to-school night, parent-teacher conferences and school breaks. Calendar static events like sports practices and games at the beginning of the year to reduce scheduling conflicts.

• Parents get used to spending one-on-one time with their kids over summer break. Once school starts, finding one-on-one time can be a challenge. Make a commitment with your kids to spend at least one afternoon or evening each week just hanging out, playing games, or going for a walk. Spending dedicated one-on-one time with each child will give you the opportunity to evaluate how well they are adjusting to their new schedule, new friends, and new school faculty.

• Before school begins help your kids reconnect with old friends. Consider hosting an ice cream social in your backyard. Provide vanilla and chocolate ice cream with a variety of do-it-yourself toppings. Have games and play music.  Allow plenty of time for the kids to get reacquainted and feel connected. Establishing connections before school starts helps relieve some of the social pressures to fit in with a new crowd at school.

• If your child is attending a new school, visit the school and walk the halls, find the restroom, the cafeteria, and the gym. Familiarizing your child with the new school layout before the first day will help reduce anxiety.

• Elementary aged kids have a fear of getting lost.  If your child takes the bus, walk to the bus stop and show them where to locate the bus number and route number so they get on the correct bus. A practice run will make them feel more confident when school starts.

Planning ahead and being organized will ensure a happy successful school year. Keep communication open by discussing your children’s concerns before they become issues. Making family connections a priority will help your kids feel grounded, secure and confident to navigate through all of the experiences the new school year has in store for them.

About Jennifer Chung & Kinsights:
Jennifer Chung is a parenting expert and co-founder of Kinsights.com: part parenting community, part online health record. Kinsights provides parents with a safe place to seek answers to their questions while also helping them track their child’s health information. Organize your child’s growth and developmental milestones, immunizations, medications, allergies, and more.  Connect with Kinsights at https://kinsights.com to learn more and sign-up! You can also follow them on Facebook and Twitter (@kinsights).

The post Tips For A Stress-Free Transition From Summer To School Time appeared first on AKAMom Magazine.

(BPT) – Helping children with their homework requires more than an understanding of the subject matter, whether it’s algebra or world literature. To help children succeed throughout the school year, it’s important for parents to nurture positive study habits and organizational skills, and provide kids with a home environment that fosters concentration.

“Whether your kids are just learning to read, write and spell, or they are studying for the SATs, we parents have an opportunity to help instill work and study habits that will stick with our children for life,” says education and parenting expert Dr. Michele Borba, who is the bestselling author of 22 parenting books and a frequent TODAY show contributor.

Borba offers parents some easy tips to help children of all ages develop skills that will help them reach their academic goals:

* Give them space – Create a dedicated space for homework and study. This underscores the importance of homework to kids. If you don’t have room for a homework desk, consider keeping all homework and study tools in a bin or box that children can take out and use every day. Keep all essentials in one place to help avoid time wasted looking for the dictionary, ruler, calculator or other tool.

* Create a routine – Choose a time that works best for your child to do homework, then stick to that time every day. A set and predictable schedule helps minimize homework battles. “Work before play” can motivate kids to get their homework done, but if your child plays sports or has other after-school commitments, doing homework after dinner may be the best option.

* Give them smart tools and study aids – Just as your mechanic can’t fix your car without the right tools, it’s hard for kids to do homework without the proper tools. Choose tools like the new Post-it Study collection (www.Post-it.com), which is designed to help students stay organized and use time efficiently. For example, Post-it Study Message Flags are restickable flags that feature helpful reminders like “Study,” “To Do” and “On Test” that help kids highlight material that needs additional attention. Note Tabs, Page Markers, Flags and other products in this collection by Post-it Brand stick securely to papers, notebooks, textbooks and more – yet remove cleanly – to help kids organize information during homework and study time.

* Avoid distractions – Establish a technology-free zone for homework and studying. Turn off TVs, ban text messaging and ensure kids are using their PC for research, rather than Facebook. This measure may seem obvious to you, but remember – kids are so tied to tech these days that they may be surprised to find out they can more efficiently use their time without the distractions of technology.

* Map out assignments – Help children plot homework on a schedule so they have simple reminders of daily, weekly or long-term assignments. Include other engagements like sports or music lessons to help kids have a clearer picture of their own schedules. This can help build basic time management skills, like working on a long-term project every day over time, or avoiding a late-night cramming session for a big test.

* Lessons in planning and prioritizing – Teach kids to make lists of what they need to do each night in order of priority. As your child accomplishes each item, have him cross it off the list. For children who had difficulty staying on task, breaking large projects into smaller, more manageable tasks can help. Encourage kids to do the hardest homework first to help relieve the pressure of a long to-do list.

* Emphasize the effort – Stressing perseverance and effort in a task helps children work longer and harder, because they recognize their success is based on how hard they work. Instead of asking “What score did you get?” ask “How hard are you working?”

* Effective study habits – Spreading out study sessions and practice testing were the two most-effective learning tactics, according to a recent report by the Association for Psychological Science. Both techniques involve strong time management skills. Help children think of study sessions or pieces of a larger project as daily to-dos, and just as important as the homework assignment that may be due tomorrow.

The post Eight ways to help kids hone their homework habits appeared first on AKAMom Magazine.

When you have children you know the importance of a good routine. Children thrive on routine and they’ll come to appreciate it greatly, but it’s not always easy to establish a routine at home. With seven children of my own I have tried it all, and I have come to figure out 5 tips that help build and establish a routine. And without further adieu, here they are:

 1.  Consistency – Write down your desired routine and complete it consistently, as a family, everyday for a week. The first week might be difficult, but don’t give up – be consistent. At the end of the week you’ll be able to make changes and modifications where necessary, and you’ll likely be surprised by how well your family has taken to the routine. After the first week it’ll go much more smoothly! Things to ensure are part of the routine include: a designated wake up time and bedtime, hygiene schedules, healthy meals, family time, play time, down time and school.

 2.  Communication – Talk about the routine everyday in order to make sure all family members are on the same page. Let your family add to the conversation in discussing what they like, what they don’t like, what works well, what doesn’t and why. Finding a routine that works for everyone is key to the success of your routine. So give every family member a chance to communicate in order to be sure everyone’s needs are being met by the routine you’ve created.

3. Organization – Be as organized as you can when it comes to your routine. Make sure homework is complete in the evenings, projects are ready for transport to the car before going to bed, everyone has what they need to leave the house, etc. We use a large family calendar wherein we write in big projects, happenings and the daily schedule of activities as well as a large white board where we write important reminders, so we don’t let anything fall through the cracks or ruin our routine.

 4.  Schedule – In our home, everyone looks at the calendar, discusses it, adds to it, and talks about their day, after school events, upcoming weekend events, family nights, and after school sports. Use a calendar and teach your children how to use it, too. If they know what the calendar means they’ll likely ask you to add their important events, activities and ideas to it. Don’t forget to allow time in the schedule for bumps in the road. Your routine might be bumpy every other day, and it’s important to plan time for those bumps in the schedule and make room for adjustments, too.

I know routines have the tendency to be rigid, but you can’t forget to have fun – be a family, be supportive, be funny, smile; life is short, enjoy the moments of chaos, and grow together.

Happy parenting!

Daddy Nickell

Robert Nickell, aka Daddy Nickell, father of 7, offers his “5 cents” worth of advice to expectant and new parents.  Daddy Nickell is the founder of Daddyscrubs.com, delivery room duds and daddy gifts and apparel, and the DaddyScrubs blog where he covers topics about parenting all from a Dad’s perspective.

The post 5 Routine Tips that Work appeared first on AKAMom Magazine.

Did you know the best preparation for back to school is a good night’s sleep? Lack of sleep can affect a child’s performance, attention, learning, behavior and biological functions, experts say. In fact, recent studies show that American students might be falling behind in school due to a lack of shut-eye.

With all the excitement and stress that accompanies the new school year, many children slip into a pattern all too familiar to tired parents. One more book, one more glass of water, one more TV show … the child who continually resists going to bed experiences difficulty in falling asleep, resulting in what doctors identify as limit-setting sleep disorder.

Parents can help children through the transition by creating an enjoyable bedtime routine that’s fun and relaxing, says Dr. Laura Sergis, pediatrician for the Children’s Medical Group and advisory board member at Cloud b, creators of award-winning products designed to help children sleep. The all important routine can include family story time with favorite books, sing-alongs to favorite lullabies and cuddly companions that alleviate night time fears with soothing sounds and lights. Incorporating a trusted buddy like Cloud b’s new Twilight Carz in the bedtime routine helps children transition from playtime to bedtime with its fun push and play action by day and its soothing starlight projection by night.

Sleep expert Kim West, licensed certified social worker, also known as The Sleep Lady, recommends that all electronics be turned off an hour before bedtime. Homework and getting bags together should be done before the one-hour electronics off time – the one hour should be for relaxing activities including bathing, washing up, reading, talking about the day, etc. Read stories like the new Scholastic classic, “My Turtle and Me”, inspired by Cloud b’s Twilight Turtle, an adorable plush that projects a soothing view of the night sky to comfort children to a peaceful night’s sleep.

Parents can add another magical element to the routine with Cloud b’s new Twilight Turtle Tunes that plays personalized lullabies featuring favorite songs, soothing sounds and even the voices of loving parents or caregivers as it projects a starry sky above. Parents put it all together on the Twilight Turtle Tunes app that delivers the magic to the special edition toy via Bluetooth.

In planning the ideal bedtime, West suggests parents do “the math backwards.” For example, if your 2-year-old needs to be up at 7 a.m. to get dressed and out the door to daycare, then he should be asleep by 8 p.m. (This age needs, on average, 11 hours at night and two hours during the day.)

She notes that it also goes without saying that parents should eliminate caffeine from their children’s diets. If it can’t be done completely, then no caffeine after 3 p.m. Dinner should be at least two hours before bedtime so that your child gets a chance to digest.

Finally, exercise during the day does help a child sleep better, but try to avoid exercise an hour before bedtime. Definitely avoid rough-housing, which can really rile up a child just when you want him to be settling down.

As parents find the best routine and stick to it, they’ll discover that the whole family is functioning better. Bedtime may become the best time of the day – a calm, quiet moment before slumber to make great memories and strengthen the bond between parents and children. -For more information on sleep-friendly toys and products, visit www.cloudb.com.

The post Sleeping tips for back-to-school success appeared first on AKAMom Magazine.